Acne

Acne: Story So Far..

08:23

Having suffered with acne for about three years now, my skin is never something I like talking about, let alone writing about it on the internet and including a picture of myself with no makeup on, but like they say there's a first time for everything. 

Before I hit the age of sixteen I had lovely clear skin, not a blackhead, scar or spot in site. However that summer my skin had a bit of a meltdown and decided now was the time for me to get acne (couldn't think of a worse time in my life if I tried). For a while I didn't really treat my acne, all I did was buy every face wash and scrub available on the high street that was geared towards spot prone skin, but none of those were helping, if anything they made matters worse. 

I then went to my local GP and got put on antibiotics, which I took for about a year and a half I think, but those didn't really do the trick either; it wasn't getting any better, and by this point my acne had spread to my cheek and chin area, were as before it was just confined to my T-Zone. 

Unfortunately I don't have any bare faced pictures of myself from when my acne was at its worst because as you can imagine, makeup was my best friend and the camera... was not! What I can offer you however is a picture of myself now. 

                                                                        An unedited, bare-faced, HD picture of myself taken straight after my workout! 


After having taken Trimethoprim (Click here to read my in depth blog post all about it) for 10 months, this is how my skin looks now. 

While on Trimethoprim my skin was beautiful, it was spot and blackhead free; my facialist was extremely impressed! But I couldn't be on medication for the rest of my life, so in June, my dermatologist and I decided that it was time for me to come off it. My skin stayed clear for a few weeks once I had finished my course, but while in Mallorca I noticed I was starting to get a few spots here and there, it was a bit disheartening, but I knew this would happen anyway. 

As you can see from the picture above I don't have any big red nasty spots on my face; the only red spots that you can see are actually scars, and I get those whether I pop a spot or not. Besides the scars all I have are a few little bumps on my forehead and on the side of my nose, and considering I haven't been on medication for three months now, thats actually pretty good going.

I would highly recommend Trimethoprim to anyone with acne who is a bit afraid to try Accutane. You may still get a few spots when you come off it, but the same can be said for Accutane, and the possible side effects of Accutane just did not seem worth the risk to me. 

Now I'm on the hunt for really good skin care that will keep my skin in the condition it's in now or better yet, clear it up even more. It's going to take time and a lot of trial and error, but its important to me that I only use whats best for my skin. 

To any of you suffering with acne all I'll say is, keep your head up and don't let it knock your confidence too much. The people that mean the most to you and are true friends, really won't care that you have a few spots on your face, and those who do aren't worth your time. Have patience, do your research and enjoy your life! 

Lara x 

Beauty

Summer Review: L'Oréal Professional Solar Sublime Protection Spray

08:33

For me summer has finally started, I'm currently blogging from the beautiful island of Mallorca, and I'll be here until September (Lucky me!!). With the summer comes all the lovely products that are catered to protecting and caring for your skin, hair etc from that gorgeous yet harmful (if your not careful) sun. 
Before leaving to come to Mallorca i did a cheeky Feelunique order, and the L'Oréal Professional Solar Sublime Advanced Protection spray was the product i was most excited to try out. 

I've had a chance to try this product out in both the sea and the pool, and I also let my sister use it to get a second opinion, and we both love it. Priced at £11.25 you can't really go wrong. It has UV protection that creates a light film around the hair to protect it from any sun exposure; and it doesn't leave your hair greasy or sticky, in fact mine and my sister's hair felt softer once it had dried. The smell is another plus, it just oozes summer with it's tropical scent, which lingers in the hair even after its dried. 


I could not recommend this product enough! There are far more expensive ones on the market that do the same thing, but I just can't justify spending all that much money when, in my opinion this one is just as good. You get 125ml in the bottle, and only need a few light sprays to cover your whole head, so it will last you ages. 
However if you have coloured hair, i'm not sure if this would work for you, and just to be safe I would purchase something that specifically protects colour treated hair. 


Lara x 

Beauty

Mini Haul: Madrid Style

14:46

First off i feel like i should apologise for being a bit MIA recently, its been a crazy few months and blogging kind of slipped my mind; but fear not, i'm back, and i've come back with a haul for you guys. Now i don't know about you, but im a big fan of hauls, maybe its because im incredibly nosey like that; this is only a small one, but hey, any new makeup is good right?



So being the smart shopper that i am, i brought all the products at El Corte Ingles here in Madrid (i think the english equivalent would probably be John Lewis) and because i have a foreign passport i got a 10% discount (nice bit of helpful information for anyone traveling to Spain). 




 Nars Blush in Gilda






 Nars Long Than Life Long-Wear Eyeliner in Rue Bonaparte


The first two products, as you can see from the photos above are from NARS. Now these two products made this a pretty exciting purchase as they are the first things i have ever brought from the brand, it may surprise you that i didn't go for the cult favorites such as 'Laguna' bronzer and 'Orgasm' blush, but they weren't really what i was looking for. I was in desperate need of a new blusher, but didn't want to go down the pink sparkly route that i normally do when buying blusher and Gilda was the perfect product. As you can see from the picture it is a pretty vibrant salmon/ coral colour and i will admit that the thought of using it kind of scared me, but if i use a little and blend it well it looks really lovely and natural and looks even better now that i have a slight tan. The whole non-glittery blush thing means that you would probably have to use a highlighter with it, especially in the evening time. 
The second item i brought was a flesh/light coloured eyeliner to put in my waterline as part of my everyday look to brighten up my eyes. Having used this product for a while now, i can happily sit here and tell you that it does the job, im not going to give it holy grail status just yet, as i feel that i could find something better. In terms of it being called a 'Longer Than Life' eyeliner, i'd have to disagree a bit, it doesn't last all day on me and it does need touching, but thats the only down side i can think of. 



Rimmel Scandaleyes Mascara + La Roche-Posay Cleansing Gel

Now im not a fan of wearing/ applying false eyelashes, therefore i always buy mascaras that can give me the same amount of intensity minus all the fussing about. For this reason i have always been a huge fan of the Maybelline 'The Falsies' but this Rimmel mascara was on a 2 for 1 offer so i thought id give it a go, and i can't quite believe that im typing these words, but this may replace my beloved Maybelline mascara!! One coat of this, and i have my perfect day time look- defined but not crazy in your face lashes, and on a night out 3-4 coats of this and i may as well be wearing false lashes, and at times have even been asked if i am... i highly highly recommend that you go buy this and give it a try.
Last but certainly not least, i brought myself a face wash. If you have read some of my last posts you will know that i have/ some times still do suffer from acne breakouts. I would normally buy a product that was geard towards acne prone skin, but i decided to give my skin a break from all the harsh stuff, and get the most gentle thing i could find, and that is why i brought the La Roche-Posay Cleansing Gel, and my skin has really thanked me for it. It gets every little bit of my makeup off and doesn't sting or irritate my eyes. I've had very few breakouts since using this product and my skin feels a lot more hydrated then it did before. If you are looking for a bog standard face wash then this is without a doubt my highest recommendation. 

Lara x 





Beauty

New Year. New Makeup.

14:06

So people its 2013, now i don't know about you but im pretty disappointed that there aren't any hover crafts like in 'Back To The Future'. However we are in store of more beauty products, and limited addition collections, which is always exciting! 

 Now my last post was quite some time ago (naughty Lara!) but i pinky promise i will post things more often im not going to sit here and tell you that i'll post every other day, because to be honest i may not, but i will be posting more, that you can count on. I have a few posts lined up that im looking forward to writing, and i'll also be posting new stuff on my lifestyle blog too, so check that out if you're interested. 

 Happy New Year!

 Lara x